How to catch Snapper in the Shallows

Well its been a bit brass Monkey up here (Whangaroa) over the last month in the Winterless North with some hell frosts, sideways rain, hail & windy days but when its fine & good its been stunning.

Water temp sitting around the 13 – 14 deg mark but some days feels colder, lots bloody colder but hay thats fishing in the Winter & you know what they say, fortune favours the brave.

I have been fishing some of the shallow fowl & reefs (under 10m) outside the Whangaroa Harbour over the last month & been battling with some nice Snapper from 5 to 10kg, Horse KY a few small Kings, plenty of Johnnies (John Dory) around & a few reef fish in between, a real mixed bag.

All taken on Zman softies, colour varies from day to day so it pays to have a good selection on hand as I’m finding that what worked yesterday or last week might not work today or tomorrow.

Also be prepared to change your colour if its a slow day & you might be pleasantly surprised of what might jump on the other end.

Light weighted Jigheads (Oceanangler Lightbulbs in Pink) in 1/4 & 1/2oz is all that is needed for a slow drift down the water column with most hits coming on the drop & when I say hits some of them are bloody violent, sometimes these fish amaze Me at how aggressive they can be with hell runs, drags screaming, just love that sound & feeling as light weighted silly string (6lb braid) gets stripped of your reel at pace.oh yeah just can’t get enough of that.

Have also dropped down in Fluro leader size from 20lb to 15lb & instantly noticed the difference in strike rate, not a lot of difference in size but those subtle changes can be the difference between coming home with a couple in the bin to coming home with a bin full, it all helps (that extra 5% X factor).

As with most of the fishing I have done over the years I’m always looking for new areas to prospect & up here in the Far North it is endless with broken fowl & reefy structures all over the place, a Softbaiters dream so be prepared to move around a bit, try different spots & once again you might be pleasantly surprised at what you may encounter & catch.

Remember your not going to catch them sitting on the couch next to the fire with your feet up watching TV, Winter is a great time to go fishing so get out there & get amongst the action.

Cheers & Happy Days.

SB

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